1. Objectifs

Intentions :
« [...] the main objective of this study was to verify the hypothesis that pubertal development, obesity, body satisfaction, as well as family and peer influences predict problematic eating behaviors in children and adolescents. » (p. 76)

Questions/Hypothèses :
« Early maturing children were hypothesized to be at greater risk of being overweight, receiving negative comments and peer pressure to lose weight. It was further hypothesized that participant characteristics (including precocious puberty, BMI, being female, and younger age) as well as family characteristics (mother’s concerns about the child’s weight and the child’s perception of parental support), and social influences (peer pressure and negative comments about the child’s weight) would predict disordered eating (e.g. weight loss strategies such as dieting). » (p. 76)

2. Méthode

Échantillon/Matériau :
- Quebec Health and Social Survey of Children and Teenage, Enquête Sociale et de Santé auprès des Enfants et des Adolescents québécois — ESSEA
- Six hundred and eight children aged of 9 years (325 girls and 283 boys) and 662 adolescents aged 13 to 16 years (349 girls and 313 boys) were selected.

Instruments :
Questionnaires

Type de traitement des données :
Analyse statistique

3. Résumé

« In summary, results from the present study suggest that behaviors to lose or control weight among 9-year-olds are mainly predicted by pubertal timing, lower maternal abusive control, and peer pressure. Among adolescents, mother’s lower BMI, lower relative income, peer pressure to lose weight, and negative comments about the child’s weight predict behaviors to lose or control weight, strategies to lose weight such as dieting and the frequencies of behaviors to loseweight. The findings suggest that both parents and children require a heightened sensitivity to the impacts of their comments on disordered eating behaviors. Programs that address teasing and bullying are known to be of considerable value in general and may have the additional benefit of curbing eating disorders. Readers are reminded that
girls are particularly vulnerable to negative comments about how they look and certainly predisposed to engage in unhealthy eating behaviors whereas boys are normally more willing to accept weight gain. While boys are as dissatisfied with their body image as girls, the sources of their discontent are different and typically correspond to existing gender stereotypes (e.g. attractive men are portrayed as muscular and attractive women as slim). » (p. 82)